The Problem
by Slackslack
Summary: Tadashi muses at Hiro's lack of friends. Rated T for one some-what adult reference.


Tadashi was always concerned for his little brother. The kid zipped through school faster than most people even thought was possible, he had no friends, and frankly the only life he really led was that of a tinkerer.

The problem with Hiro, though, was that he blatantly did not care. No one really liked Hiro, for one reason or another, and Hiro easily brushed it off. It genuinely did not affect his brother.

For example; One time, Hiro hung out with a child from his middle school. When Hiro came home, Aunt Cass asked how it was (since it was rare that Hiro left the house) and Hiro informed them that the boy no longer wished to hang out.

"Apparently he doesn't like that I can beat him at Street Fighter," Hiro smugly said with a shrug, walking through the kitchen. "What can I say? I know games."

"Yeah," Tadashi commented, "And you know about being a 13 year old bum." He made a fist and rubbed it against his little brother's head, laughing when Hiro whined and flailed at him in protest.

"Oh, you two," Aunt Cass rolled her eyes. "Be nice."

Don't forget the time when a girl tried to ask Hiro out.

Tadashi had been waiting for his little brother outside of his middle school. One of the middle schoolers thought that Hiro was cute (though Tadashi would beg to differ on that) and stopped Hiro before he got to his brother.

"Hey, Hiro," She bashfully waved and stared at him. Tadashi noted that she had very blond hair, grey eyes, and tried her hardest to do "adorable" things as she spoke.

"Uhm...Hi?" He went to walk around the girl, but she side stepped and stopped him.

"I think you are realllllly cute." She added a little giggle for effect. Hiro beamed at this, and the look that the girl gave him was one that Tadashi read as: 'I'm winning him over!' That was when Hiro decided to speak.

"Really? I do too!" Hiro exclaimed. Then he skipped to Tadashi, leaving a stunned tween behind himself as Tadashi rubbed his eyes in a disappointed and embarrassed manner.

Hiro really shouldn't speak.

"What would mom and dad say?" Tadashi ground the words out, looking down at Hiro. "Bonehead."

It was evident that the younger Hamada couldn't have cared less.

There was also the time that Hiro got invited to a birthday party and rewired some things that he deemed as "done wrong".

The father of the household was pretty annoyed to find that his surround sound speakers were torn apart and...really, he couldn't explain it, but somehow they were louder.

Aunt Cass prompted that maybe he should be grateful that Hiro made them better, but the man still seemed pretty mad that Hiro touched his things.

"I think he's more mad that I made them better than he did." Hiro commented- Right in front of the man while Cass and him were talking.

The man stormed out, mumbling something about a brat.

Hiro's arrogance and confidence kept him from really making any sort of friends- In a way, Tadashi was glad for this. If Hiro had many friends, their relationship as brothers surely would be compromised. But all the same, all Hiro did was...Tinker.

"Hiro," Tadashi called, walking up the stairs and into their shared room. It was his intention to take him out to his college to meet his friends. The kid needed to get out, or he might go his entire life without knowing the company of someone who wasn't related. Tadashi wasn't going to be around forever, he had a life to live. He would have a wife and kids some day... And some time after that, he would pass. Hiro could not rely on him forever.

It was with a solemn expression that he marched up the stairs, ready to force his brother out, until Hiro glanced back from his computer at the call of his name, clicking out of a tab. His face bore no expression, but Hiro never hid what he was doing on the computer. It wasn't like him.

"...What's wrong?" Tadashi asked, eyes narrowing.

There had better be a good explanation for Hiro having closed out that tab. His brother better not be some disgusting little pervert- He was so young, too!

"Wrong? Nothing." Hiro gave a nervous grin, then yelped as Tadashi rushed at him. After a few moments of fighting over the computer mouse, Tadashi dragged the tab back up and sighed in relief.

Nope, everything checked out. Just some robot fan page.

"You're lucky, squirt." Then he stopped- carefully reading the screen "...Bot fighting?"

Hiro was silent for a long moment. Tadashi was leaned over the desk next to him, one hand on the mouse, the other bracing him against the desk while he stared at Hiro. Hiro sat in his chair, hands folded in his lap while he stared back.

"What's wrong with you!?" Tadashi suddenly scolded, slapping the younger boy's arm.

"Owch!" Hiro complained, rubbing at the slightly sore spot.

"Why would you even be on this page? What is your problem?" So reckless.

"Problem? There isn't a problem. I mean, if there were then I wouldn't have won so many times."

Tadashi looked at his brother, and there was the same problematic, arrogant grin that he bore so many times before.


End file.
